Do you know this secret of the car rental industry?

Have you ever heard of a re-positioning cruise in the cruise ship industry?

That’s where you get a super-cheap price on a cruise simply because the cruise line has to move the ship back from where it already is to a hot vacation market ahead of a peak travel time.

Not a lot of people know this, but it’s possible to get the equivalent of this in the car rental industry.

Twice a year, car rental companies have to move cars around to meet demand. They will give you a great deal on a one-way rental if you can help them!

Right now, we’re about to enter one of those periods.

What you need to know about re-positioning rental car deals

As peak season comes to an end in Florida, car rental companies need to get their vehicles out of the state and move them up North along the East Coast.

This is the time of year you’ll find rentals for around $15 per day — if you can move their vehicles out of the Sunshine State. Generally, you can rent up to two weeks on one of these deals.

If you want to be really frugal, you can buy the cheapest one-way airfare into Florida from wherever you live. Then you pick your rental up at the airport, and you keep it for up to 14 days. Use it during your vacation and then drive it back up North!

Even at $15/day, these offers save the car rental companies a fortune because they get out of having to hire a transfer driver or dedicating an employee to re-position the vehicle.

So you get a great deal and you save the rental company money at the same time!

In the fall, it works in reverse in the fall. You can get a deal in the North and drive it down to Florida. You’ll get to use it while you’re down there and then you can get a cheap one-way airline ticket back home.

Optional products such as LDW ($29.99/day or less) — which Clark says you should never get because you may already have coverage through a credit card or auto insurance policy — and refueling are extra.

Clark’s recent cheap car rental experience

Competing car rental agencies will likely roll out rates similar to those you saw above in the weeks ahead. We’ll keep this list updated, so check back often!

But if you want to be ahead of the curve, money expert Clark Howard advises calling around to a few agencies that are located at airports several weeks before a peak travel time to ask if they’re participating in these kinds of deals and where they need their cars moved.

Because of the cheap price, there will be a lot of restrictions on these deals — plus additional taxes and fees. But if you can make it work, this is a real steal.

Last year, Clark snagged one of these deals and would up paying $26.01 for a two-day rental of a Toyota RAV 4 with unlimited mileage.